View source for Foula

{{Short description|Island of the Shetland Islands, Scotland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox Scottish island
|Map=
|GridReference=HT960392
|coordinates = {{coord|60.133|-2.067|display=inline}}
|location_map= Scotland Shetland
|caption=Foula shown within Shetland
|celtic name=Fughlaigh
|scots name=Foula
|norse name=Fuglaey
|meaning of name=
|Image= The Voe, Foula - geograph.org.uk - 1712511.jpg
|ImageCaption= Da Voe, the harbour of Foula
|area= {{convert|1265|ha|sqmi}}
|area rank=43
|highest elevation= The Sneug {{convert|418|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
|Population=17<ref name=RESAS/>
|population density =1.34 people/km<sup>2</sup><ref name=RESAS>{{RESAS}}</ref><ref name=Smith/>
|population rank=62=
|main settlement=[[Ham, Foula|Ham]]
|island group= [[Shetland]]
|local authority=[[Shetland Islands Council|Shetland Islands]]
|references=<ref name=Smith>{{Haswell-Smith}}</ref><ref>{{Ordnance Survey}}</ref>
|module = {{Infobox lighthouse|embed=yes|qid=Q28874338
| shape = cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern<ref>{{Cite rowlett|sht|access-date=2016-05-29}}</ref><ref>[http://www.nlb.org.uk/LighthouseLibrary/Lighthouse/Foula/ Foula] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140727212640/http://www.nlb.org.uk/LighthouseLibrary/Lighthouse/Foula/ |date=2014-07-27 }} Northern Lighthouse Board. Retrieved 29 May 2016</ref>
| lightsource = 35 watt metal halide lamps
}}
}}
'''Foula''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|uː|l|ə}}),<ref>{{cite book|title=BBC Pronouncing Dictionary of British Names|date=1990|editor-last=Pointon|editor-first=Graham|edition=2nd|location=Oxford|publisher=The University Press|isbn=0-19-282745-6|url=https://archive.org/details/bbcpronouncingdi00gepo}}</ref> located in the [[Shetland]] archipelago of [[Scotland]], is one of the [[United Kingdom]]'s most remote permanently inhabited [[island]]s.<ref name="bbc2021">{{cite news |last1=Lafferty |first1=Jamie |title=Foula: Britain's most remote inhabited island |url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211208-foula-britains-most-remote-inhabited-island? |access-date=17 December 2021 |publisher=BBC Travel |date=9 December 2021}}</ref> The liner [[RMS Oceanic (1899)|RMS ''Oceanic'']] was wrecked on the Shaalds of Foula in 1914. Foula was the location for the film ''[[The Edge of the World]]'' (1937).

==Toponym==
The name "Foula" comes from the [[Old Norse]] ''Fugley'' 'bird island'.<ref>{{cite book|title=A Dictionary of British Place Names|last=Mills|first=David|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=2011|isbn=978-0-19-960908-6}}</ref> On some early Modern maps (such as [[Willem Blaeu]]'s 1654 map of [[Orkney]] and Shetland), it is called '''Fule''' or '''[[Thule]]'''. The former &ndash; pronounced "foo-lay"&ndash; is just an alternative spelling of Foula. The latter is due to ancient sources &ndash; notably [[Tacitus]]' ''[[Agricola (book)|Agricola]]'' &ndash; often locating the mythical land of Thule in the Shetland Islands region, and the [[phonetic]] closeness of the island's name. However, the Ancient Norse name post-dates the Thule narrative and is not connected to it.

==Geography==
Foula lies in the [[Atlantic Ocean]], {{convert|15|nmi|km|0|abbr=off}} west of [[Walls, Shetland|Walls]] on [[Mainland, Shetland]]. It was part of Walls civil parish and now is in the parish of Walls and Sandness. The island is about {{convert|2+1/2|by|3+1/2|mi|km|0|abbr=off}}, with a low-lying coastal strip along the east side. With an area of {{convert|12.7|km2|sqmi|frac=16|abbr=on}}, it is the eighth largest and most westerly of the Shetland Islands. It rises from low broken cliffs in the east to precipitous {{convert|150|–|365|m|ft|abbr=on|-1}} cliffs in the west.<ref name=Smith/> The island has five peaks, rising to {{convert|418|m|ft|abbr=on}} at the Sneug and {{convert|376|m|ft|abbr=on}} at the Kame.<ref name="gaz">{{cite web| url=http://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst1099.html| title=Overview of Foula| publisher=[[Gazetteer for Scotland]]| access-date=2008-12-13| archive-date=2011-07-22| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722024724/http://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst1099.html| url-status=live}}</ref> At the north end is Gaada Stack, a [[natural arch]] and towards the south-west is Da Sneck Ida Smaalie, a spectacular 30&nbsp;m deep and 2&nbsp;m wide crack in the cliffs.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lonelyplanet.com/scotland/foula/activities/walks-on-foula/a/poi-act/1541981/1320381|title=Walks on Foula &#124; Scotland Activities|website=Lonely Planet|access-date=2021-10-27|archive-date=2021-10-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211027195527/https://www.lonelyplanet.com/scotland/foula/activities/walks-on-foula/a/poi-act/1541981/1320381|url-status=live}}</ref> Foula lies on the same latitude as [[Saint Petersburg]].

In 2011 Foula had a population of 30 people, living in Hametun and Ham.<ref name=NRS>{{NRS1C}}</ref> At the time of the 2022 census the resident population was 17.<ref name=RESAS/> Islanders previously made a living from fishing – first for [[Whitefish (fisheries term)|whitefish]], then [[lobster]].<ref>{{cite news| first=Jon| last=Henley| url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland?page=5| title=Living at the edge of the world| date=21 February 2008| pages=5| newspaper=[[The Guardian]]| access-date=13 December 2008| location=London| archive-date=19 February 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219062121/http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland?page=5| url-status=live}}</ref> Today, most islanders are [[Croft (land)|crofters]]<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.foulaheritage.org.uk/| title=Foula – The Edge of the World| publisher=Foula Heritage| access-date=13 December 2008| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201170235/http://www.foulaheritage.org.uk/| archive-date=1 February 2009}}</ref> with income from [[Sheep husbandry|sheep farming]] and [[birdwatching]] [[tourism]].<ref name="bbc2021"/> The island retains a post office in Ham.<ref>{{cite web |title=Foula Delivery Office |url=https://www.royalmail.com/services-near-you/delivery-office/foula-delivery-office-ze2-9pn |publisher=Royal Mail |access-date=2 September 2024}}</ref>

A hidden reef, the "Hoevdi Grund" or the "Shaalds o' Foula", lies just over {{convert|3|km|nmi|abbr=on|frac=2}} east of Foula between the island and the [[Mainland, Shetland|Shetland Mainland]]. Tides here can reach {{convert|12|kn|km/h m/s|0}}, and as the reef comes to within less than a metre of the surface, it poses a significant threat to shipping.<ref>[http://shetlopedia.com/Shaalds_of_Foula "Hoevdi Grund"] Shetlopedia. Retrieved 19 April 2012. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150610221137/http://shetlopedia.com/Shaalds_of_Foula |date=June 10, 2015 }}</ref>

===Transport===
[[File:Noup, Foula.jpg|thumb|Da Noup, Foula]]
[[File:Foula Ferry, New Advance - geograph.org.uk - 5027722.jpg|thumb|left|Harbour at Ham with the crane for lifting boats out of the water carrying the ferry ''New Advance'']]
[[SIC Ferries|BK Marine Limited]] operates the ferry service from Ham to [[Walls, Shetland|Walls]] on Mainland, Shetland.<ref>[https://www.bkmarine.co.uk/foula-ferry "Foula Ferry Booking Information"]. BK Marine Ltd. Retrieved 29 June 2024.</ref> ''New Advance'' carries up to 12 passengers and completes the voyage in about two hours. Flights take off from [[Foula Airfield]] to [[Tingwall Airport]]. A ferry service ran from Foula to [[Scalloway]] until 2010.

There is little shelter for boats in the island. The only beach is at the head of Ham Voe on the east coast. Local boats, including the [[mail boat]], are hauled out of the water.<ref name=Smith/>

==Wildlife==
[[File:Cliffs, Foula.jpg|thumb|right|Cliffs in Foula]]
The island's {{convert|370|m|adj=on}} cliffs are home to numerous birds, including [[Arctic tern]]s, [[red-throated diver]]s and [[great skua]]s, and birders make up the bulk of visitors to the island.<ref name="bbc2021"/> The island has been designated an [[Important Bird Area]] (IBA) by [[BirdLife International]] because it supports large colonies of cliff- and [[moorland]]-nesting [[seabird]]s.<ref name=bli>{{cite web |url= https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/2478 |title=Foula|author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2024|website= BirdLife Data Zone|publisher= BirdLife International|access-date= 2024-09-01}}</ref>

==History==

===Prehistory===
Foula was first inhabited as far back as 5,000 years ago.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.foulaheritage.org.uk/foula_archaeology.htm |title=Foula Archaeology |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100901090444/http://www.foulaheritage.org.uk/foula_archaeology.htm |archive-date=1 September 2010 |date=2004 |first=Helen |last=Bradley |publisher=Foula Heritage}}</ref> Between 2006 and 2008, the Bath & Camerton Archeological Society took several trips to Foula to study prehistoric [[standing stone]]s. A particular sub-circular stone circle of interest was discovered in 2006 at Da Heights in the north of Foula. A further investigation launched in 2007 revealed that the sub-circular stone construction was man-made, elliptical in shape with its long axis pointing towards the mid-winter [[solstice]], built before 1000 BC.<ref>[http://www.bacas.org.uk/foula/Foula2007FinalReport.pdf "The Foula Landscape Project: Da Heights Stones Survey and Investigation"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904210913/http://www.bacas.org.uk/foula/Foula2007FinalReport.pdf |date=September 4, 2011 }} (pdf) (June 2007) Bath and Camerton Archaeological Society. Retrieved 19 April 2012.</ref>

===15th to 19th centuries===
In 1490, the Ciske family's estates were divided and [[Vaila]] and Foula became the property of Alv Knutsson. However, the Ciskes were Norwegian, and as Scotland had annexed Shetland a few decades before, there were confusing and conflicting claims of ownership.<ref name=Smith />

In 1720, a [[smallpox]] epidemic struck the two hundred people living on Foula. Because the islanders were so isolated from the rest of the world, they had no [[immunity (medical)|immunity]] to smallpox, unlike most [[Northern Europe|North European]] peoples at that time, and nine out of ten of the island's population died in the epidemic.<ref>{{cite book| author=Watts, Sheldon| year=1997| title=Epidemics and History: Disease, Power and Imperialism| url=https://archive.org/details/epidemicshistory0000watt| url-access=registration| pages=[https://archive.org/details/epidemicshistory0000watt/page/85 85–86]| location=New Haven and London| publisher=Yale University Press| isbn=0-300-08087-5}}</ref>

Foula remained on the [[Julian calendar]] when the rest of the [[Kingdom of Great Britain]] adopted the [[Gregorian calendar]] in 1752.<ref name="bbc2021"/> Foula adhered to the Julian calendar by keeping 1800 as a leap year, but it did not observe a leap year in 1900. As a result, Foula is now one day ahead of the Julian calendar and 12 days behind the Gregorian, observing [[Christmas|Christmas Day]] on 6 January Gregorian and [[New Year]] on 13 January Gregorian.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland|title=Living at the edge of the world|publisher=Guardian|language=en|author=Jon Henley|date=21 February 2008|access-date=15 January 2018|archive-date=15 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180115185116/https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=Smith /><ref name=Keay>Keay, J. & Keay, J. (1994) ''Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland''. London. HarperCollins.</ref>

The writer and journalist [[John Sands (journalist)|John Sands]] lived on Foula and [[Papa Stour]] for a while during the late 19th century. He opposed the prevailing [[truck system]] and drew political cartoons lampooning its deficiencies. In one, he drew Foula as a beautiful young woman being strangled by a boa-constrictor labelled 'landlordism' watched by other reptiles called 'missionary', '[[laird]]' and 'truck'.<ref>{{cite book| author=Fleming, Andrew| year=2005| title=St Kilda and the Wider World: Tales of an iconic island| location=Macclesfield| publisher=Windgather Press| pages=159| isbn=1-905119-00-3}} Fleming credits the source of this information as {{cite news| author=Nicolson, J| date=3 July 1937| title=John Sands| work=[[The Shetland Times]]}}</ref>

The island was one of the last places where the [[Norn language]] was spoken (although it is claimed that [[Walter Sutherland (Norn)|Walter Sutherland]] of [[Skaw, Unst|Skaw]] in [[Unst]] was the last speaker), and the local dialect is strongly influenced by [[Old Norse]].<ref name="bbc2021"/> In 1774 George Low, a young Scottish clergyman, visited Foula hoping to find remnants of oral literature in Norn, then nearing extinction.<ref name=langugage_in>[[#norn-hnolt|The Language of The Ballad of Hildina]] (2006–2014)</ref> He found fragments of songs, ballads and romances, and from his best source, an old farmer called William Henry, the ballad now known as "[[Hildina]]". Henry was quite poorly acquainted with the language, so that, although he had as a child memorised all 35 stanzas of the ballad in the original Norn, he could give Low only a summary of its content rather than a translation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kershaw |first=N. |date=1921 |author-link=Nora Kershaw Chadwick |title=Stories and Ballads of the Far Past |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EQ09AAAAIAAJ|location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |access-date=6 June 2015|pages=164–165}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Millar |first1=Robert McColl |date=2014 |chapter=Social History and the Sociology of Language |editor1-last=Hernández-Campoy |editor1-first=Juan M. |editor2-last=Conde-Silvestre |editor2-first=J. Camilo |title=The Handbook of Historical Sociolinguistics |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SIWpmWNoB7YC&pg=PA57 |location=Chichester |publisher=Wiley Blackwell |page=57 |isbn=978-1118798027 |access-date=6 June 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Millar |first1=Robert McColl |date=2007 |title=Northern and Insular Scots |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hVKdueNzXgoC |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Edinburgh University Press |isbn=9780748623174 |access-date=6 June 2015|pages=128–129}}</ref> "Hildina" is the only extant poem in Norn.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nornlanguage.x10.mx/index.php?shet_hild |title=The Language of The Ballad of Hildina |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |website=Norn |publisher=Hnolt |date=2006–2014 |access-date=7 June 2015 |archive-date=9 June 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609234051/http://nornlanguage.x10.mx/index.php?shet_hild |url-status=live }}</ref>

===20th century===
[[File:Foula post office.jpg|thumb|Foula's post office in 1964]]
[[File:The site of Foula's Post Office - geograph.org.uk - 4991103.jpg|thumb|The former post office in 2016]]
[[File:Punds 1964 - geograph.org.uk - 497002.jpg|thumb|The farm of Punds in 1964]]
Professor [[Ian Holbourn]] purchased Foula around 1900, becoming its last [[laird]].<ref name=AmazonFoula>{{cite book|title=The Isle of Foula|id={{ASIN|1841581615|country=uk}}}}</ref><ref name=Times2>{{cite news|title=Must Foula Become Deserted?|url=http://find.galegroup.com/ttda/infomark.do?&source=gale&prodId=TTDA&userGroupName=oxford&tabID=T003&docPage=article&searchType=BasicSearchForm&docId=CS152397605&type=multipage&contentSet=LTO&version=1.0|access-date=7 May 2015|work=[[The Times]]|issue=56109|date=5 September 1964|archive-date=27 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211027200730/https://idp.shibboleth.ox.ac.uk/idp/profile/SAML2/POST/SSO?execution=e1s1|url-status=live}}</ref> He described the disaster of 8 September 1914, when the [[armed merchant cruiser]] [[RMS Oceanic (1899)|HMS ''Oceanic'']], formerly a [[White Star Line|White Star]] liner, wrecked on the Shaalds o' Foula. Holbourn embarked upon the [[RMS Lusitania|RMS ''Lusitania'']] in May 1915 and survived [[Sinking of the RMS Lusitania|its sinking]].

The professor's grandson, Robert Holbourn, a [[Naval architecture|naval architect]], acted as the island's "Peat Marshal" for many years. [[Peat]] is a valuable and scarce resource for heat and fuel in Shetland. Its cutting requires skill, taking several years to master. The most able islanders become known as the 'cutters' and, in the spirit of a long-standing Foula tradition, all able-bodied men are now and then "bid to the banks" of women who "didn't have a cutter in the house".<ref name="Martin">{{cite book | last=Martin | first=Simon | title=The Other Titanic | date=2004 | isbn=978-1-904746-03-4 | pages=88–89| publisher=Shetland Times }}</ref>

Simon Martin, who stayed in Foula for five years in the 1970s while salvaging metal from ''Oceanic'', describes the island as follows:<ref name="Martin7">{{cite book | last=Martin | first=Simon | title=The Other Titanic | date=2004 | isbn=978-1-904746-03-4 | page=78| publisher=Shetland Times }}</ref>

{{blockquote|Foula, or [[Thule|Ultima Thule]], as it was known as far back as the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] times, rises impurely out of the water, and from the Shetland Isles mainland its five peaks, the Noup, Hamnafield, the Sneug, Kame and Soberlie stand out starkly and characteristically. The cliffs on the west side vie with those of [[St Kilda, Scotland|St Kilda]] as the highest sheer cliffs in Britain, {{convert|1200|ft|m|abbr=off}} of solid rock towering from the sea.

Foula, or Fughley as it was once also known, means literally 'Bird Island', with an estimated half million birds of various breeds sharing the rock with the inhabitants. The island’s surface largely consisting of a peat bog on rock.}}

A [[lighthouse]] at the southern tip of the island was built in 1986. Originally powered by [[acetylene]] gas, it has been converted to [[Solar power|solar]] and wind power.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.nlb.org.uk/ourlights/history/foula.htm| title=Foula Lighthouse| publisher=[[Northern Lighthouse Board]]| access-date=2008-02-01| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928083957/http://www.nlb.org.uk/ourlights/history/foula.htm| archive-date=2007-09-28| url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Culture and the arts==
[[File:Gaada stack.jpg|thumb|right|Gaada Stack, Foula]]
[[File:Fishing boat off the northern coast of Foula - geograph.org.uk - 3717131.jpg|thumb|Fishing boat off the northern coast of the island]]

===Religion===
Many inhabitants of Foula attend the [[Presbyterian]] Kirk, also known as Baxter Chapel, that is part of the [[Church of Scotland]].<ref name="Gear1983"/> It is built of grey stone and is situated "on the tail of 7 Hamnafield".<ref name="Gear1983">{{cite book|last=Gear|first=Sheila|title=Foula: Island West of the Sun|year=1983|publisher=Hale|language=en|isbn=9780709196730|page=55}}</ref>

===Film===
* [[Michael Powell]]'s film ''[[The Edge of the World]]'' (1937) is a dramatisation based on the true story of the evacuation of the last 36 inhabitants of the remote island of [[St Kilda, Scotland|St Kilda]], on 29 August 1930. St Kilda lies in the [[Atlantic Ocean]], {{convert|64|km|mi|abbr=off}} west-northwest of [[North Uist]] in the [[Outer Hebrides]]; the inhabitants spoke [[Scottish Gaelic language|Gaelic]]. Powell was unable to get permission to film in St Kilda. Undaunted, he made the film over four months during the summer of 1936 on Foula, where the islanders speak [[Shetland dialect]].
* ''[[The Edge of the World#Return to the Edge|Return To The Edge Of The World]]'' (1978) is a documentary capturing a reunion of the 1937 film's cast and crew, 40 years later, as they revisit the island.
* In 2023 Polish writer and director Klaudiusz Chrostowski made a low-budget film ''Ultima Thule'', starring [[Jakub Gierszał]] as a 30-year-old man arriving on the island to get over the death of his father. The film was almost entirely shot on Foula and features Arthur Henri, a local inhabitant, in the main supporting role. The film won the Best Micro Budget Film Award at [[Gdynia Film Festival]] in 2023.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://kinoteka.org.uk/programme/ultima-thule |title=Ultima Thule + Director Q&A|date=2023 |publisher=Kinoteka |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2023/film/global/polish-buzz-titles-berlin-film-festival-1235527956/ |title=Polish Buzz Titles at Berlin Film Festival |date=19 February 2023 |publisher=Variety |access-date=29 June 2024}}</ref>

===Folklore, festivities and traditions===
Foula's inhabitants preserve many Norse traditions of folklore and festivities. They still follow the [[Julian calendar]] for Christmas celebrations, with all the islanders gathering in one house on 6 January.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/remote-foula-islanders-finally-get-to-celebrate-christmas-lcjlrn56m|title=Remote Foula islanders finally get to celebrate Christmas|last1=Merritt|first1=Mike|access-date=2019-11-21|archive-date=2019-10-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191028064231/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/remote-foula-islanders-finally-get-to-celebrate-christmas-lcjlrn56m|url-status=live}}</ref> New Year's Day falls on 13 January.<ref>{{cite news|title=Islanders not scared of luck | page= Front page|date= January 5, 2015|location= Glasgow|work=The Herald}}</ref>

===Poetry===
[[Vagaland]]'s poem "Da Sang o da Papa men"<ref>{{cite web| author=Fleming, Richard| url=http://www.conradweb.co.uk/Papa_Stour_magazine_31_03_2006.pdf| title=Da Song o' da Papa Men including a translation| work=Papa Stour magazine| access-date=2007-09-13| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5llfg7ncs?url=http://www.conradweb.co.uk/Papa_Stour_magazine_31_03_2006.pdf| archive-date=2009-12-04}}</ref> about the fishermen of [[Papa Stour]] includes an insistent chorus chant, "Rowin Foula Doon".<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.conradweb.co.uk/Papa_Stour_magazine_31_03_2006.pdf| title=Rowin Foula doon| work=Papa Stour magazine| access-date=2007-09-13| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5llfg7ncs?url=http://www.conradweb.co.uk/Papa_Stour_magazine_31_03_2006.pdf| archive-date=2009-12-04}}</ref> This refers to the fishermen's practice of rowing their open fishing boat out to sea until the high cliffs of Foula were no longer visible. This entailed the boat's being some {{convert|96|km|mi}} west of Papa Stour.<ref>Vagaland (edited by M. Robertson) (1975) ''The Collected Poems of Vagaland''. Lerwick. [[The Shetland Times]].</ref><ref>{{cite web| url=http://shetlopedia.com/Papa_Stour| title=Papa Stour| publisher=Shetlopedia| access-date=2007-09-13| archive-date=2008-06-26| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080626022421/http://shetlopedia.com/Papa_Stour| url-status=live}}</ref>

==Geodesy==
The Sneug in Foula was the origin ([[Principal meridian|meridian]]) of the 6 inch and 1:2500 [[Ordnance Survey]] maps of Orkney and Shetland.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.charlesclosesociety.org/files/153Meridians.pdf |title=198 years and 153 meridians, 152 defunct |website=www.charlesclosesociety.org |access-date=2016-02-27 |url-status=live |archive-date=2016-10-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026185105/https://www.charlesclosesociety.org/files/153Meridians.pdf}}</ref>

== Notable residents ==
* [[Martin Ferguson Smith]] (b. 1940), scholar and writer.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.martinfergusonsmith.com/|title=Martin Ferguson Smith|last=SemiColonWeb|website=www.martinfergusonsmith.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-23|archive-date=2019-09-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190907085636/http://www.martinfergusonsmith.com/|url-status=live}}</ref> Since retiring in 1995 he has lived in voluntary self-isolation on Foula.
* [[Ian Holbourn]] (1872 – 1935), was Laird of Foula, a professor and lecturer at the University of Oxford, and a writer.
* Sheila Gear, author of ''Foula, Island West of the Sun'' (published 1983 by [[Robert Hale Limited]]). She was born in Oxford and studied zoology at Aberdeen University. She married Jim Gear, a crofter, and wrote a book about crofter life in Shetland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sheila Gear |url=https://www.michaelwalmer.com/sheila-gear |access-date=2024-03-12 |website=Michael Walmer |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Living at the edge of the world {{!}} Scotland holidays {{!}} The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland |access-date=2024-03-12 |website=amp.theguardian.com|date=21 February 2008 |last1=Henley |first1=Jon }}</ref>
* [[John Sands (journalist)|John Sands]] (1826–1900) of [[Ormiston]], was a Scottish freelance [[journalist]] and artist with an interest in [[archaeology]] and folk customs. He spent almost a year on St Kilda and lived on several other remote islands including Foula.

==See also==
{{Portal|Scottish islands|Scotland}}
* [[Fair Isle]]
* [[List of lighthouses in Scotland]]
* [[List of listed buildings in Walls and Sandness, Shetland Islands]]
* [[List of Northern Lighthouse Board lighthouses]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|last=Holbourn|first= Ian B. Stoughton|author-link=Ian Holbourn (writer)|title= The Isle of Foula: A Series of Articles on Britain's Loneliest Inhabited Isle|edition=Reprint |date=2001|publisher= Birlinn|isbn=1-84158-161-5}}
* {{cite news| url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/feb/21/scotland| title=Living at the edge of the world| date=21 February 2008| work=[[The Guardian]]| access-date=2008-12-13 | location=London | first=Jon | last=Henley}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikivoyage}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090201170235/http://www.foulaheritage.org.uk/ Foula Heritage]
* [http://www.nlb.org.uk/LighthouseLibrary/Main/ Northern Lighthouse Board]
* [https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4001/4486624546_e77445ae3d_b.jpg Picture of Foula Lighthouse]
* [https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20211208-foula-britains-most-remote-inhabited-island Foula: Britain's most remote inhabited island]

{{Shetland}}
{{Islands of Scotland}}
{{Lighthouses of the Northern Lighthouse Board}}
{{Authority control | additional=Q28874338}}
{{Coord|60|08|N|02|04|W|region:GB_type:isle|display=title}}

[[Category:Foula| ]]
[[Category:Islands of Shetland]]
[[Category:Important Bird Areas of Shetland]]
[[Category:Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Shetland]]
[[Category:Nature Conservation Review sites]]
[[Category:Norn language]]
[[Category:Birdwatching sites in Scotland]]
[[Category:Underwater diving sites in Scotland]]